Title: Even Angels Fall

Pairing: HiruMamo, kinda (Surprised? Me too. XD)

Rating: Introspective, lead in.

Warnings: slight OOC Mamo-nee (just to cover my ass)

Summary: Set after the series; post college. Mamori wonders what happened to Hiruma.

A/N: Written on the spur of the moment (as in I didn't have it written before I wrote the preceding Title through A/N ;; I know, baaaaad Yahnkehy-kun.). I know I suck at writing Mamori, but I'll try to keep her as close to in character as possible. Concrit is adored and more than welcome.

Yahnkehy's inspiration: "The Angel watches him struggle, heart breaking for him. The Devil's plight is felt within her own heart. Her heart has spoken; she tips her wing into his hand."

00

The job she'd applied for and gotten had looked so much better on paper than it was to actually do. Assistant Director of the high school amefuto division looked like all sparkles and hard work, in actuality... it was meetings, grasping principals who were not above trying to bribe her into ignoring infractions of the rules, vain players, and an utter absence of one Hiruma Youichi.

Granted, Mamori was used to the majority of the job; being the manager for Deimon's Devil Bats back in high school had entailed several of her job requirements. The fact that Hiruma wasn't there was the major difference. Back in high school, she might have watched a game or two and enjoyed them, but it was Hiruma who had lit that desire in her gut, that need to fight for the win. He was the entire reason that the sport held her attention for more than a few days.

Hiruma's burning desire to win had caught in every one of his players, and Mamori as well. Now, with the lack of the Demon of Deimon, amefuto was feeling a little flat. She'd known he was getting his masters in business when they'd been in college, but she had always assumed that he was doing it to start a team of his own and 'beat the living hell outta the other team- YA HA!' but, when graduation had come he'd vanished without a trace.

Mamori only knew that because she'd spent the last two years since graduation looking for him, covertly of course. She knew he had spies everywhere and hoped that if he got word that she was looking for him, he might come out.

But, he hadn't. Hiruma Youichi had all but vanished into nothingness. The only proof of his existence were the frightened looks she'd get when she would drop his name in conversations with possible leads. The only answers she'd gotten in two years were horrified expressions and advice to 'let sleeping demons lie'.

Anezaki Mamori wasn't built to give up. She had a job for him -at least that's what she told herself. In all of her twenty-six years, only one person had ever stimulated her mind and heart in a way that made it impossible to function without them.

Yet again, Hiruma Youichi had snagged a minion.

It had taken from high school amefuto to college amefuto clubs to finally put a name to the strange feeling Hiruma always lit in her gut. At first she'd thought it was just the drive to work hard and fight with everything she had, but, after a time, she'd realized that it was more than that. It had startled her at first, this warm and slightly irritated feeling she got around him and had tried to get rid of it by putting it into the arguments she would have with him but it only seemed to grow stronger.

Mamori still hadn't put an exact name to the feeling, too uncomfortable with the notion of tender feelings associated to Hiruma.

"Mamo-chan, you have a guest." Suzuna's slightly amused voice came over the intercom, startling Mamori out of her thoughts.

"Is my schedule open long enough to see this person?" Mamori asked, knowing that if Suzuna labeled the person as a 'guest' that it meant one of her friends had dropped in and wasn't about to tell them no if she had time to see them.

"Oh, uhm, you did have a meeting scheduled in thirty minutes, but they called a moment ago and canceled." Suzuna replied, slight static over the intercom.

"Fine, send in my guest." Mamori rubbed her eyes and straightened a few papers on her desk, she knew that none of her friends really cared if her desk was a mess, but it was habit.

Mamori heard the door open as she was sliding a stack of papers into the bottom drawer of her desk. "Just take a seat, I'll be right... with..." She had sat up and her mouth dropped open.

Spiked blonde hair, vivid green eyes, and a smirk that could send every girl into spasms greeted Mamori's gaze and she slowly stood. "Hi-Hiruma-kun?"

"Fucking Manager."

Damn, was it ever good to hear that again. "My name is Mamori, as you well know, Hiruma-kun."

TBC...